Fighting Boredom delve deep into the files sent over and bought for another bumper reviews page, this time we give you Todeskino who we see ‘Ranging from sweet pop ambient to glitchy, beat-collapsing IDM’ Crushtrash x Nicholas Langley who ‘blend the energy of early ’80s dark industrial synth pop with the mesmerising allure of ’90s electronica. Melondruie who make ‘music to communicate the things that language is unable to.’ Eric Chenaux Trio with their ‘subversion of classic, timeless jazz-inflected balladry’ Martha Rose and her ‘tender, diffuse nostalgia with an air of simplicity’ Ora Cogan and her ‘smoky, psychedelic approach to gothic country and hazy folk’ Haunted Plasma who bring ‘powerhouse of futuristic synth in symbiosis with the super violence of kosmische black metal.’ and Lowlives with their ‘shared desire to make music once more for little more than the love of doing so. Fuck the rest of it. ‘ Have a read and listen to all of them below.
Todeskino – Black Patina
Cruel Nature
Another weird, glitching electronic album. This one has a bright innocent patina and despite feeling quite simple to start soon gives you depth and emotion. It almost feels broken to start but then your mind clicks and it all falls into place. A joy to immerse yourself into and let the sound wriggle around in your brain.
Crushtrash x Nicholas Langley – Prosthetic Self
Cruel Nature
Glitching electronics, heavy synth and bass notes with oddly formed beats plus an odd crooning vocal planted deep inside it’s heart. It sounds like a mess but in fact it is quite wonderful. It scuttles around like disturbed insects and arachnids when someone turns on the lights in an abandoned house but it is smoothed over by the vocal, making it hold onto the smooth groove at the centre. Interesting and strange.
Melondruie – A Storm Is Coming
Cruel Nature
Drones and notes fall over each other and nest together, a violent storm rages just out of reach and an empty vast brutal desert strewn with rocks flows out around you. Above the storm massive, rust blown spaceships battle and clash into each other and the drones, static and rumble just coats it all. Like a battlefield strewn with the dead, this is what comes after the explosion of energy, what’s left for us, what remains.
Eric Chenaux Trio – Delights of my Life
Constellation/Murailles Music
A fragile delicate soft jazz infused album with Eric’s fragile almost broken voice singing over it all. The songs are long, languid and perfectly formed. Made for sunshine, love and friends and also, strangely, dark clubs with chairs and tables and smoke circling above the select crowd. An emotional quiet listen.
Martha Rose – Close to Close
Mansions and Millions
Sounds very D.I.Y in a good way, a small sound with a yearning, beautiful vocal. The first song sums up the feeling of the record, being a gateway drug to love, never quite being good enough and always needing that bit more. Love is the main concern here and more often than not, it’s lost, unrequited or yearned for. A lovely sounding record.
Ora Cogan – Formless
Prism Tongue
Another gentle indie album with a female singer perfectly channeling emotion and creating a beautiful sound. This strays into country territory but soon shifts back to an indie pop fey feel. Which, if you are in the mood, is unstoppable.
Haunted Plasma – Reverse Engineer
Svart Records
It starts with a darkwave drone and whispers that get progressively stronger and deeper that leads to techno, massive psychedelia and goth tones, it uses layers on layers on layers and is utterly massive in its scope. A great big massive record that can take your head anywhere.
Lowlives – Freaking Out
Spinefarm Records
A great fuzzed out grunge guitar kicks in and the vocals are distorted, grating and ace, grunge done well. It breaks no new ground but then, why should it? It stutters in places and chugs along in others. It’s powerful and great to throw yourself around to. They save the radio friendly big hit single until last when the songs have already captured you, well worth a punt.
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Todeskino are on Bandcamp.
Crushtrash x Nicholas Langley are on Bandcamp.
Melondruie is on Instagram and Bandcamp.
Eric Chenaux’ Trio’s website is ericchenaux.com, he is also on Instagram and Bandcamp.
Martha Rose’s website is martharosemusic.com, she is also on Facebook and Instagram.
Ora Cogan’s website is www.oracogan.com, she is also on Facebook, Instagram and X as @oracogan
Haunted Plasma are on Instagram and Facebook.
Lowlives are on Facebook, Instagram and X as @wearelowlives
All words by Adrian Bloxham
